Asset management firm VanEck resubmitted an updated application for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on October 27, according to records in the SEC’s database.
The revised filing highlights that a seed capital investor acquired Seed Creation Baskets in October. These baskets consist of 50,000 shares of the proposed ETF, with Bitcoin prices determined by the MarketVector Bitcoin Benchmark Rate, a cryptocurrency reference price index.
Finance attorney Scott Johnsson interprets the filing as indicating that the fund’s initial capitalization will occur with Bitcoin, setting it apart from other spot Bitcoin ETF proposals that use cash for capitalization.
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A spot Bitcoin ETF represents a direct investment in Bitcoin, unlike current ETFs that primarily invest in Bitcoin futures. This type of spot ETF is expected to draw significant interest from those seeking exposure to Bitcoin through traditional asset managers.
VanEck’s recent application update adds them to the growing list of asset managers revising their requests for a spot Bitcoin ETF. Bitwise Asset Management amended their application in September in response to SEC concerns.
Similarly, earlier this month, ARK Invest and 21Shares revised their joint application, providing more details about their proposed spot Bitcoin ETF, particularly concerning asset custody and valuation practices.
These frequent revisions suggest ongoing discussions and negotiations between asset managers and regulatory authorities. ETF analyst Eric Balchunas recently observed that changes in ETF proposals might reflect the SEC’s requests for issuers to address specific concerns.
“It means ARK got the SEC’s comments and has dealt with them all, and now put [the] ball back in [the] SEC’s court,” Balchunas explained on X (formerly Twitter). “[In my opinion] good sign, solid progress.”
The U.S. SEC has postponed its verdict on multiple applications for spot Bitcoin ETFs, including those from BlackRock, Invesco, Bitwise, VanEck, and Valkyrie. Observers and analysts anticipate a resolution in the coming weeks.
